2025 Secateurs Red Blend, AA Badenhorst Family Wines
Swartland, South Africa
Swartland in a leather jacket.
This is one of those reds that feels effortlessly cool, juicy enough to drink with abandon, but with just enough edge to keep things interesting. Built around 80% Shiraz, 15% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cinsault, the 2025 opens with perfumed notes of ripe red fruit, cracked black pepper and warm spice, with a faint stony, earthy twist that gives it that unmistakable Swartland swagger. The palate is supple and smooth on entry, but there is real shape underneath, with Cabernet bringing a little grip and lift, and the finish staying dry, fresh and mouthwatering rather than soft or sweet. It is generous, yes, but never heavy, more like a rugged, sun-drenched red with plenty of personality and a lovely sense of movement through the glass.
For when: there is smoke in the air, friends around the table, and something deliciously charred on its way.
Pairs with: lamb koftas, barbecued pork, grilled aubergine, smoky sausages, or a sticky, caramelised onion tart.
If this wine were a person: relaxed, magnetic, a little windswept, and somehow cooler than everyone else without trying.
The fruit comes from Jakkalsfontein and Kalmoesfontein in the Paardeberg, where dry-farmed bush vines grow on granite and koffieklip soils, giving the wine both concentration and that lovely mineral backbone. The 2025 Swartland vintage benefited from good winter rainfall, healthy fruit and a short, balanced harvest, helping deliver a wine with both freshness and depth. After fermentation, the components were blended and aged in a mix of large foudres, 500-litre French oak, concrete and stainless steel, which helps explain the wine’s easy texture and layered feel.
Whats in the bottle
80% Shiraz, 15% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Cinsault